The Greens

Paul Whitten spends 6 months on Greens and 6 months within the Clubhouse

The above people are the ones responsible for making our course one of the stand-out courses in the Midlands and have help to provide the breathtaking vista we have become used to when we walk onto the patio. Members of our wonderful Club often take a few seconds out when they walk through the entrance to take in the view, visitors are often heard to be amazed by it.

But as long term members know it is an ongoing battle to keep the tees, fairways, greens and even the rough at it’s peak. The people who work at it work very hard in sometimes awful conditions.

On this page we will keep you informed as to what, when and why work is happening out there to help everyone.

GREENS RENOVATION WORK UNDERTAKEN OCTOBER 2018.

The aim of the renovation work is to,

1 – Relieve compaction in the soil and create air space. (Roots grow in the air spaces)

2 – Improve drainage though the soil profile.

3 – Mix sand with the existing soil profile which is a clay loam 150mm (6”) below the surface.

4 – Remove and dilute organic matter.

5 – Overseed the greens with a bent grass seed mix. This is a long-term project to help reduce disease attack from fusarium with the withdrawal of the chemicals we have used over the last 30 years. The aim is a sward of 60% bent 40% annual meadow grass.

6 – To do all the renovation work in one week in October rather then spread the work over one week in August and one week in October.

This reliefs a lot of compaction helps drainage and allows sand to drop down the holes to mix with the existing soil profile. The holes also create a lot of air space to help with deeper roots for next year and gas exchange in the soil profile.

7 – Drag mat greens to work the sand and soil back into the slots created by the Graden. This separates the sand and soil from the organic matter and puts sand and soil in contact with the seed. This is diluting the organic matter within the top 12 mm(½”)

Machines used John Deere tractor and rubber drag mat.

8 – Blow the greens off removing all the organic matter.

Machine used Echo PB 770 back pack blower.

9 – Brush and vibra roll the greens. This helps level the surface and firms the soil around the seed.